[1][2][3] It was discovered by Stephen J. Karsen, an American science teacher working in Daejeon, South Korea, in 2003,[4] and described in 2005.

Other plants and animals currently found in Asia and North America share close relationships, showing a similar pattern of biogeography.

The lateral surfaces are uniformly dark but have an obscure overlay of small, whitish speckles.

The ventral surfaces are pale with moderately large, whitish flecks that are absent along the midline.

[2] The species occurs in damp talus slopes and rockslides of limestone in young forests dominated by Pinus densiflora and Quercus mongolica, mostly under small stones.